Campbell Scott's performance in the title role of "Roger Dodger" -- as a bombastic, psychologically savage, emotionally immature inveterate bachelor who habitually prowls Manhattan nightclubs, bars and even his own office for sexual conquests -- is an outstanding work of complete character submersion.

In the film's opening scene, the actor best known for nice-guy supporting roles ("The Spanish Prisoner," "Big Night") rearranges his boyish, amiable good looks into a brash, supercilious sneer and launches into venomous musing on the evolution of the sexes ("Until women develop the ability to move heavy objects by telepathy, they will need the male...") in a debate with his circle of co-worker pals. By the time he adds a cigarette smoke exclamation point to his diatribe, you can't help but find the guy contemptible.

His arrogance knows no bounds, at least on the surface. His idea of a great pick-up line is to look a woman up and down, single out likely weaknesses in her self-image and exploit them openly, hoping to hit a raw nerve. "You can't sell a product without first making people feel bad," he sniffs, applying his ad industry parlance to both work and the dating game.